Combined refrigerator and ice-cream freezer or water cooler



June 17 1924.

l P. l.. Buss COMBINED REFRIGERATOR AND ICE, CREAM FREEZER OR WATERCOOLER Patented June 17, 1924.

, FFICE PORTER L. BLISS, OF SAN FRABTCISCO,v CALIFORNIA.

Appiication inca January 27, 1920. serial No. 354,456.

'To all whom t 'may concern:

Be it known that I, PORTER L. Biiiss, a citizen of the United States ofAmerica, and

a resident of San Francisco, county of San Francisco, and State ofCalifornia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inCombined Refrigerators and Ice-Cream Freezers or Water Coolers, of whichthe following is al full and clear specification.

The object of this invention is to provide a simple portablerefrigerator, especially adapted for home use, the construction beingsuch that the apparatus may be arranged for use either as any ice creamfreezer or as a water cooler in addition toa refrigerator, as more fullyhereinafter set forth.

In the drawings- Fig. 1 is a vertical sectional view showing theapparatus as a combined refrigerator and ice cream freezer;

Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the apparatus as a combinedrefrigerator and water cooler; f

Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a horizontal sectional view through the dasher-stein lookingdownwardly; i y

` Fig. 5 is a Afragmentary perspective view of the upper portion of thedasher;

Fig. 6 is a 'detail perspective view of the lower end of one of theagitators;

Fig. 7 is a detail perspective view of one of the can-retaining keepers.i. v

In the drawings, a designates a double metal-wall can having a doublebottom and a double cover b, the space between these walls being packedwith 'a suitable insulating medium, preferably the following specialmedium: 40% to 65% diatomaceous earth, combined with 5% to 10% amorphouscarbon (charcoal), 5% to 10% silicon dioxide (line sand), 2% to 3%sodium chloride (common salt), 10% to 15% aluminum silicate (clay), and5% to 10% calcium sulphate (gypsum), thereby producing a lowcost earthymixture, light and friable, which has exceptional qualities for theprevention of heat penetration and the retaining of the cold atmospherecaused by the ice and salt, which is placed in the casing.

A metal can o for ice cream, she-rbets, etc. is anchored on a falsebottom ,this false bottom al being a metal plate unprovided withinsulating material and having a waterand-air-tight connection with theinner face of the wall of the casing to thereby form a separaterefrigerator chamber below for the reception of various food articles.The ice is placed in the upper chamber upon said false bottom d, so thattheroof of the rebottomd by any Suitable` means which Will l permit thecan to be removed from the cas-v ing entirely, as shown in Fig. 2,thereby` permitting the casing to be used as a water cooler, a suitabledraw-cock f being provided for the water chamber thus formed. The upperpart of the water chamber may be used for refrigerating purposes by in.

serting a removable wire'mesh or foraminated support g at a point abovethe ice and water. removed, it is obvious 'that the interior of thecasing must be scalded out and drainedthrough the stop-cock before theice `and drinking 4water are placed therein.. VThediatomaceo'usinsulation with which the ice and water are surroundedretains the low. temperature required fora comparatively long periodoftime, experience having shown that vice lwater may be maintained at alow temperature for a period of from 10 to 12. hours with a much smallerquantity of ice than is required with the ordinary commercial cooler. Itwill be observed that whether the upper compartment be used as arefrigerator for an ice cream can or as a water cooler, therefrigerating effect will be transmitted directly through thenoninsulatiiig bottom d to the refrigeratinig chamber below and thusmaintain that chamber at a desirably low temperature.

I prefer to anchor the freezer can only by means of a Cleat bar 7ifastened to the bottom of the can and having its ends project-ingradially beyond the sidewall of the can. A pair of keepers i fastened tothe false bottom d are adapted to be engaged by the projecting ends ofthe cleat bar to clamp the cleat bar to the false bottom. To secure thecan to the false bottom, it is simply nec- VVhen the freezer can isthus.

essa-ry tofrotfate'the can bodily until the projecting ends of thecleat'bar /i wedge under the keepers i; and to remove the can it issimply rotated in. the opposite direction until tllie ends of the cleatbar are free from I prefer also to use a special form of dasher arrangedin the can, This consists of the` main dasher consisting of a centralbar provided with lateral arms 7c and havying attached to their outerends vertical y scraper-blades kZy which, when thedasher is rotated,scrape the can. i By rotating the.

central bar by means of an upstanding shaft m, to whose `upper end isremovably secured a hand-wheel n, it Will'be observe that the 4contentsof the can may be given a rotary motion. To vertically agitate thecontents of the can, I provide a verticallysliding :appliance consistingvof a pair oi tubes oy connected together by a tubular shaft phaving ahandwheel 'q attached to y its upper end, just under the hand-wheel n.

The tubular memberso are adapted toy slide vertically on opposite sidesof the vcentral bar or staff j, a T-.shaped rib r being providedkon eachsideof said central bar or sta' j toeserve asiguideways for said tubularmembers o. By" removing the h'andwheel n, the vertical tube members 0may be vertically reciprocated on the guide-ways r, the 4main dasherbeing prevented from moving up and down l with these tubular members 0by having the upper ends of the scraper-bars Z extend high enough `toengage under 'inthe cover s of the creamcan. To agitatethe contentsofthe can when thetubular members 0 are thus worked up and down, Iprovideeach of these tubular members .at its lower end with afan'shapedarf rangement of paddles t. With this arrangement,` itwill beobserved that the contents of -the Ican may be agitatedr without cranksor gearsi The freezing properties due to the diatomaceons insulation inthe walls of the main can, causes rapid solidiiication of the liquidcontents of the cream can, and, in order to avoid completesolidification of i the contents, it is only necessary, every two orthree minutes after the can is placed in position, to give the dasherthree or four half turns by means of .the handwheel n.

`This produces the desired circular agitation scribed, what-,is-claimedas new is:

l. In an ice-creamnfreezena cream-can having a cover, a main rotarydasher held down vin the can by means of said lcover and having anoperative yshaft extending up through said cover, a pair. ofsupplemental dashers or agitators mounted to reciprocate on said maindasher and lhaving an operative means extending up through said cover,for the purpose set forth.

2. In an icecream freezer, acreamecan` a main rotary dasher having onopposite sides vertical langed'ribs, a pair.- of supplemental dashers oragitators mounted to' slide on said ribs and having means for reciprocating them extending-up through the cover of the cream-can.

In testimonyfwhereofl hereunto aflixmy signature. 4, f `PORTER L, BLISS.

Witnesses: H .e y E, P. SoHivIm'r,

GEO. L. STEWART.

